You know I've tried the cook a lot in quick succession with chocolate cookies and even had gestational diabetes and really thought that would break my chocolate addiction. But, nope once that kid was out I wasn't nearly as strong.

My son weighed 8 lbs, 13 oz. I actually LOST weight when I was pregnant with him because he was so big and taking up so much room that I could only eat a tiny tidbit and would be extremely full! Good luck!

I hope you and babes are just a month further along than you figured. It was a surprise after all wasn't it?

gestational diabetes isn't that bad to deal with if you have it. I had to follow the GD diet even though I didn't have it due to other blood sugar concerns. Lots of vegetables, protein and whole grains. I kind of enjoyed it. SO much so that I stayed on it for several months after the baby was born.

The Tuesday before my son was born, they told me he weighed not even 8 ounces. (they didn't want him bigger than 9 pounds). He was born three days later and weighed in at a whopping 9 pounds, 11 ounces--10 days early!! All that to say, I think those ultrasounds are mostly BUNK! Relax and enjoy these last weeks of your pregnancy!

My daughter's baby weighed 10 lbs, 2 oz., about a half pound more than was predicted. My DIL's son wighed over 11 lbs., about 3 lbs. more than predicted. Neither mom had gestational diabetes. My sister did have it, and had to stay on a strict diet, but kept her sugar levels where they should be by doing so. Her baby was an exact 8 lbs. I hope all goes well with you and your darling little one.

Hoping for you that all continues to be well. Of course when you say measuring a month big my thoughts jump to GD but Carrie's reminder this preg was a surprise makes me wonder if possibly your first u/s was not within first trimester which would then make it less useful for due date determination. Apparently 1st 12 weeks there is very little difference in size between fetuses, but after that "genetic potential" and "environmental factors" start to kick in (I learned this when 2nd son was potentially IUGR (intrauterine growth retardation)). All this to say, maybe the dates are off and he is right where he "should" be.

I've only given birth once... but he was 11 lbs 11 oz. He measured at 9 before birth, and was always on track during the pregnancy. No GD, either. I hear that they get bigger each time...which, to me, is pretty scary.

My smallest was 8.5. But, she was also my longest. My next was 9.10 and also long. Then came the baby weighing 9.6 and 20 inches. Truthfully, the first was the hardest, the other two were quick and easy. Besides, is there anything cuter than a round baby?

I just have one, and she was a preemie. You are at the point I was when I went into the hospital before she was born. I managed to keep her cooking until I was 31 weeks and 3 days. She was itty-bitty at 2 pounds 11 ounces. She's still tiny but has a HUGE personality and is doing great!

At my last ultrasound (post due date) for my now 2 year-old, the nurse told me he was measuring 10 lbs. I looked at the screen and after the 10 saw a 13 and asked about it. "Oh, those are the ounces," she said, "I wasn't going to tell you about the ounces." I guess she thought 3 ounces shy of ELEVEN POUNDS would freak me out. It did.

Baby turned out to be 9 lb. 14 oz. I never had gestational diabetes, just a big baby. I'm sure I did eat too much during the pregnancy. Normal delivery.

My 10 pound 12 ounce son has made me a grandma! He wasn't even the biggest guy in the nursery- there was a 13 pound baby in the nursery with him (it was 1980 and babies still stayed in nurseries!) I was fine-no gdiabetes-just swollen feet!

My only child was 9lbs 7.5 oz and I did not have diabetes although I was tested because he was big. I had gallbladder problems when I was pregnant and had to be on a strict diet for that and had to wait until he was born to have surgery. I gained about 30 lbs. which was considered normal and I lost quickly after his birth. Is there some reason why your doctor wants you to watch your diet so carefully if you are not diabetic? I hope you are not ill.

My last daughter was 9.5 pounds. One of the things I would recommend is to ask for the numbers on your 3 hour GTT. Sometimes you can "pass" a GD test, but be in a grey area. Eating a GD diet can help not stimulate your babies insulin. If you are interested in watching your blood sugar, most OBs will give you a prescription for a glucose monitor and test strips. As long as you get the kind preferred by your insurance, these can be reasonably priced.

I learned a lot about what foods trigger high glucose levels with this monitor and believe it kept my baby smaller than it would have been otherwise. (She actually measured slightly smaller than her older sister at the same gestational age.)

i love this topic. my little guy, 8 mo yesterday, was 7lb 13oz at birth. this was SMALL compared to his older sister. imagine my shock when he gained 3lbs in the first month. at his 6mo check, he weighed in at 20lbs and was on the cusp of outgrowing his infant car seat in height. all this a shocker, since i didn't think babies came much bigger than his older sister. i was wrong.

Meredith, our first child was 10 lbs. 1/2 oz. and 22". Our second child was 10 lbs. 13 oz. and 22". With the first two my labor was induced due to their sizes. Our second child, a daughter, had a *bedsore* ( a spot on her scalp and has never been able to grow hair there) on the back of her head from constant pressure. Now she's almost 19 yrs old and still has a dime sized bald spot. Our third came on her own two weeks early and she was 7 1/2 lbs. Walking a lot during the pregnancy helped my recovery tremendously.

Hi Meredith,I've had three daughters. First (now 34) weighed 6 lb 2 oz. Second (now 31) weighed 9 lb, and third, who turned 23 on Wednesday, weighed 11 lb 6 oz. During that pregnancy I was told I was having a normal-sized baby, but I knew something was "different"!! I was quizzed about whether there was a family history of diabetes, which there wasn't. But I did develop diabetes five years later.Merchant Ships is my favourite blog and you seem like the nicest person, so keep up the good work, and best wishes for the rest of your pregnancy.

I had gdiabetes with my boys and they weighed 6 lbs 1 oz and 7 lbs 7oz which is really small for my family. The diet is bad...it's healthy...but I still was addicted to DQ blizzards afterward. I gained 42 lbs with my first and 18 lbs with my second.

Meredith, a C-section isn't necessarily good, but if it's what is needed to have a healthy birth, then have it. My daughter was early because I developed eclampsia; my blood pressure was 196/109 the night she was born, I lost my eyesight for several hours, had a migraine, etc., etc. Without the c-section, I would have probably had a stroke and we could have both died. I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm just saying that you need to do what is medically necessary at the time.

Since baby is measuring so much bigger, you might just want to make sure you have everything ready a few weeks earlier than you planned. I'm just saying...

I can't brag about her being big either. She was born about 3.5 weeks earlier, was 19.5 inches long, and 4 pounds, 13 ounces. She was skinny then and almost 13 years later, not much has changed!

My biggest baby was 8lbs 8oz, his little brother followed suit almost 4 yrs later at 8lbs 2oz. The dr's told me seconds were almost always bigger, but he wasn't. But they still looked small and tiny to me!!Dana

If this helps at all, my youngest brother was 13 lbs + and my 5' 3" mother delivered him vaginally.

What makes the story even more interesting is that we lived in B'desh at the time. There was a military hartel at the time. Dad and Mom had to take the landrover and back field (over the rice paddys) to the midwives clinic. There was no electricity! My dad was to hold the lantern but was too shaky so they went and called in a random maid servant and she held the lantern while my mother delivered my brother.

Then because of the hartel they literally bundled her back up and drove her back home right away. I woke up the next morning to find mother at home with my new brother in my doll cradle!

And he was early.

The moral of that story, have no fear! It is all going to happen exactly as it is meant to be!

My first was 8 lbs 6 oz, a boy and late. My second was 8 lbs 1 oz, a girl and right on time.

I have had from 6lbs 12oz up to 9lbs 4 oz but the big baby was an easy delivery, four hours, because she was 23 inches long. My hardest was a 8 lb 12 oz boy who had a huge head and was built like a ball. Babies sometimes grow in spurts so you may have caught it right after a growth jump. If it's cool at all a little exercise will help with baby weight gain.-kattmaxx

My babies were both early and small, both born at 33 weeks, first one was 4 lb. 4 oz, and second was 3 lb, 14 oz.

Did they give you any kind of gestational age estimate based on the length of the baby's bones? Maybe they have to do a biophysical profile for that. With both my kids the US techs overestimated their weight and gestational age based on head size and leg length. We are apparently a tall family with BIG heads. :)

My guess, since this pregnancy caught you by surprise is that baby is due a little earlier than you thought! Wouldn't that be nice?

I LOVE the new ultrasounds and how you can see the details so well! Incredible! With my first (almost 19 years old) the ultrasounds were so blurry and fuzzy you had to have a really good imagination to tell there was a baby in there. :)

My first baby girl was 9.1 pounds. My second baby girl was 9.5. After the birth of the second one, the doc thought I was probably GD even though the test was negative. I do have diabetes in my family but I am not diabetic. Ever since my last one (12 years ago), I have been hypoglycemic although at my last blood sugar test came out normal.

My oldest (girl) was 11 pouds 9 oz and I had her naturally. My son was 9 pounds 6 oz and my youngest (girl) was 8 pounds 13 oz. So they don't always get bigger :) The boy was actually the most difficult because he had (has!) a big ol' pumpkin head. LOL I didn't have diabetes with any of them either.

Besides the preemies - I think I might win! :) Our biggest and last was 6 lb 11 1/2 ounces! It comes from my hubby's side - I think they were all under 6 pounds. My GD 3rd child was 6 lb 11 oz, not exactly huge! :) I struggled off and on with the GD diagnosis but did my best and kept my numbers under control except for 2-3 times (it was REALLY hard when we went out to eat). My 4th pregnancy, I was borderline GD, flunked the very first test, then 1 or 2 #s were high on the second test, but was good enough not to be diagnosed GD by the dr. Also, the ultrasound tech seemed concerned b/c baby was measuring small (wondered if due date was accurate). I knew our babies tend to run small. Our smallest weight was second one at 6 lb even.

I'd have to agree with the other commenters - it's possible due date is off or baby was hitting a growth time. Not good to fret! :) God is in control and watching over you and the little one. After 4 c-sections, I wouldn't exactly recommend it but sometimes it is necessary. A big baby doesn't dictate a c-section (in my opinion) and probably a midwife would agree and might fight a dr on that issue. It probably will depend on other circumstances so talk about it to both.

Most of mine were in the 9-10+ pound range, no diabetes here. My #5 (boy) was the biggest at 10 lbs 6 oz, then I had a 9 lb 14 oz girl after that. They did not get bigger which each baby, and I have never had diabetes. I know of some women who've had 11 lb babies with no GD and they were delivered vaginally, as were all of mine. Big baby does not necessarily mean C-section. Also, as you know, ultrasounds can be off by a pound either way. Good luck! You don't have too much longer to go;-)

Hey Meredith,I have read that birth weight has to do with the mother's genetics. If your mom or either of your grandmas had big babies, you may have at least one little giant. That was the case with me. My first, a girl, weighed 8 pounds 12 ounces, but my second, a boy, weighed 11 pounds 11 ounces. No gestational diabetes- or at least the tests didn't indicate anything amiss. And I gained less than my first pregnancy! But my grandma had an 11 pound, 9 ounce baby boy- my dad. He was her third child and the largest of her 9 children. And he was born the old-fashioned way!Both my babies were born c-section and I advise people to avoid them if at all possible, but if you do decide to have one, it's not the worst thing in the world either. Educate yourself, so you know what you're in for and make the best of it. That's pretty much all anyone can do when it comes to labor and delivery anyway. Praying all will turn out just as it should!

Oh my goodness all you ladies with such big babies--God bless you! Beautiful ultrasound, Meredith. I'm sure things will go just fine for you. 2nd time was 11lb 6oz for me, but that was TWO babies--challenges there too of course. 1st was 7 1/2 lbs.

My daughter weighed in at 9 lbs. and she was my first (no GD either). I am due in 5 weeks with #2 and bet he will be bigger (it's a second baby AND a boy). My husband's family makes large babies. ;) His brother was almost 12 lbs. I am praying this one isn't that big!!! :)

Wow, how amazing Meredith! Maybe you are a month farther along than you thought? My biggest was 8 pounds, and he was a week early. So not so big but he is now. About 27 pounds at 1 year and he is 32 inches long. What does the Doctor say? We will be praying for you all!SuzeQ

My largest was 10# and I felt huge. My mom said I was the biggest pregnant lady she'd ever seen, (thanks mom) I did notice a big difference pushing. It was harder with a big baby and I was more tired. But those were the only major differences for me. Good luck. Angel

My oldest son was 6 lbs even, 2 1/2 weeks late, my second son was 8 lbs even, 1 day early! He was a forceps delvery, dr said had he been 8lb 1 oz, it would have been a c-section, which like you, I wanted to avoid. Much shorter labor with the second, but the 6-pounder was easier to deliver! #2 was measured at 7lb 9oz 4 days before birth, so the US was close. I did have gestational diabetes with #2 but controlled it with diet. I also had AWFUL swelling in my feet and legs the last month or so with #2, mostly feet swelling with #1.

My biggest was my second(the only boy)..he was 10 pounds 3 ounces and 24 inches long. I only gained 15 pounds with him...i couldn't eat much at a time because he had everything smashed together(I could still button my regular jeans the day I had him, I never show with mine) No GD either.

My biggest was 9 lbs. 13 oz. 8 days ago! I too measured large for gestational age but had no GD. I only gained 6 pounds with this 5th pregnancy and so now I weigh less than I did when i first got pregnant! Crazy!! :-)

My one and only weighed in at a whopping 9lbs. 6oz. and was 22 1/2 in. long. My doctor had estimated that baby would weigh 7 1/2 lbs. and after the birth Doc. said he had never been as wrong about the size of a baby as with mine.

I did not have gestational diabetes (that was 9 years ago) but I have insulin resistance which could lead to type 1 diabetes. My father weighed 10 1bs. 4 oz. and he has had type 1 diabetes for 22 years.

Meredith, your little man has a cute profile and I think you both are fine! I suspect you will give birth sooner your doctor has estimated.

So, my last baby (#4) was two weeks early. He weighed 10 lbs and 11 oz. The ultrasound tech estimated him to weigh 10 lbs 12 oz, two or three days before he was born. I did not have gestational diabetes. I did have my first c-section. He was breech (transverse). (All's well that ends well.)

My babies were 'normal' weight, what ever normal is. Jimmy the oldest was 8 pounds 2 oz. Born 1 month and 3 days past his due date. No, I know when I got pregnant because husband was military and gone..know when I to get pregnant..doctor did not believe me...said I had to be mistaken. Yeah right, I think he was trying to say I was fooling around...I did not, would not etc. He was too big for me to give birth to, I had to do the 'c' section thing. My second son was born on his due date, he was a 'c' section too. He weighed 7 pounds 2 oz. So big difference. Remember my sons are grown, Jimmy is 34 and Jon is 30. They did not have ultrasounds etc. back then. All I got was my doctor using a measure tape. Roxie

I'm just popping in to say God Bless as you continue your pregnancy. I've got some catching up to do since I've been away for a week and half having our honeymoon keepsake baby :) Garrett was born last Wed at 12:25 am and was 8 lbs 3 oz, even though I'd only gained 15 lbs during the entire pregancy. Try not to stress, you've had two great kids so far and are going to have a third soon :) We are so excited to be parents and things could not be going better now that we are done with the hospital and jaundice part!

Three of my babies were over due by over 2 weeks. Their weights were: 6lb 5oz, 5lbs 1 oz, and 4lb 7 oz - ( I know, not much help all of mine were small) My last one was 3 weeks EARLY!! YEAH - he as our first boy and weighed a whole 6lbs 7oz!! He looked HUGE to me - I think he would have been a nice, normal sized baby had he gone to term!

Your baby looks wonderful. I noticed your little tummy in one of the photo's recently - you look great - you will have to give us a profile picture if you feel up to it!!

Beautiful ultrasound picture!! I am due at the begining of November, so very near your time. I've been having regular ultrasounds, due to a previous stillbirth, but at our hospital here in the UK they don't give pounds and ounces at this stage - just a generalised 'oh, the baby looks on target'. All of mine have eventually weighed in at under or around 7lbs - but I have to say I feel so much bigger this time.

As the other ladies have said, I hope that you may be further along than you thought. Not that GD is the end of the world, but the fewer stresses in pregnancy the better!

Hope everything is going well, if it makes you feel any better, I had a 8.7 pounder, and my friend, God Bless her, had TWO 11 lb babies within a year of each other!!! Now that is some serious baby weight!

Hi Meredith!My first, boy, was 9 lbs, though Dr. had thought he would be 7.5 pounds (back then only based on tummy measurements and palpating). Had 3 boys all around 8 lbs follow him. Fifth son shocked us all being 9 lbs 13 oz. Sixth son back to the 8 lb size. Seventh was our first girl,and she was 8 1/2 lbs. Next was twins with a combined weight of 14 lbs and yes, I did feel huge! 17 months later I gave birth at home to our biggest baby so far, an 11 lb 1 oz girl! (BTW, she is still tall for her age, taller than the twins by several inches - I think it is just her genetics, she is going to be tall like my oldest son who is 6'3) Number 11 was a 9 lb girl. Number 12 was a shocker for me... I had a placenta previa and so the did a c-section about 2 weeks before the due date and she was a shrimpy 7 lbs 10 oz. That is our smallest for a singleton pregnancy. The doctor told me later that when the placenta is down low like in a previa situation that sometimes the babies don't grow as big because it is not the best part of the uterus to attach to. I wish he had told me that the day she was born! LOL!It will be interesting to see how big #13 turns out to be, with another previa. So far he is measuring right on for dates, which is great!Also want to add that with my biggest baby, #10, I believe I had untreated low thyroid, no GD for any of my pregnancies though they insist on testing me multiple times because I have had such a large baby (argh), and once I got on thyroid meds my babies have never been as large again. My friends who are midwives say that low thyroid can effect the size of the baby as much as GD, but most doctors don't check that.blessings,jerri

I'm praying that you don't come down with GD...on a positive note I had an 11 lb. 1oz. baby girl about a year ago (the doctor had no clue she was that big - until she got here) and I never got GD...I'm thinking you just have a superb oven!

My biggest baby was 8-7. I was always really high on the GD tests too. Had to do the extended test 3 out of 4 times. Never was "technically" diabetic, but the gal said I was close enough that I should act like I was. Lots of protein to balance sugars, daily exercise, you know the drill...

Were your first two big babies? Any chance that the conception date is a bit off?

Big babies run in my family. I was 9 lb. 13 oz myself. My sister had a 11 lb 1 oz boy. And as for my kids? 9 lb 15 0z, 9 lb 12 oz, and finally 10 lb 11 oz. I told my midwife that the 3rd was going to be the biggest but she disagreed with me - said he would be about 8 lbs!! As we left the hospital the nurses were joking that he wasn't an infant but a toddler!

Meredith,I'm due a few weeks before you with #4 and so far, at some point, I've measured at least a month bigger with each of my babies. They've been 10 lbs (5 days late), 8lbs 14oz (10 days early), 9lbs 14oz (15 days early) all girls. This one is a boy and I'm worried he's going to be bigger than his sisters, but like others said, the first was the hardest! Oh, and I haven't had gd with any of them, just lots of fluid and big babies. Good luck!

Meredith,I'm due a few weeks before you with #4 and so far, at some point, I've measured at least a month bigger with each of my babies. It usually goes down the further along I get. They've been 10 lbs (5 days late), 8lbs 14oz (10 days early), 9lbs 14oz (15 days early) all girls. This one is a boy and I'm worried he's going to be bigger than his sisters, but like others said, the first was the hardest! Oh, and I haven't had gd with any of them, just lots of fluid and big babies. Good luck!

try not to be to alarmed. Somethings you just catch the baby right after a growth-spurt. And remember that those ultrasounds aren't totally accurate, and the measurements depend on the tech, too. I tend to have small babies (so far, at least), but I was measuring larger and was surprised with smaller ones :-)Like grown people, babies come in all shapes and sizes and it's a very rare thing for a mom to grow a baby she can't birth. Blessings!!

Wow there are some big babies out there! My labor and delivery nurse was shocked when little me had an 8 pound baby. Because I'm so tiny everyone expected a 6 or 7 pound baby. When my son started measuring big, I knew he was going to be heavier, and he was 8 and a half pounds. He was a little harder pushing out, and his love of being sunnyside up didn't help, but he came out great, and my midwife managed to not cut (as the previous dr did) and I didn't even tear.

I pray that you're GD test goes well, and that you have a comfortable birth!

Baby # 6 was the biggest 10#, 4 oz, but was the easiest deliver because he was the first one done without stirrups. (My oldest, the "runt" at 7# 13 oz is 27 and in those days, in this small community stirrups were what you did.) When he was born we told the Dr. his name was "David". The Dr. looked him over and said "are you sure his name isn't Goliath?" That's still his favorite part of his birth story. ;)

Seven children here, all natural births, all good-sized, no G.D., and no real problems to speak of.

8.3, 9.15, twins 7.1 & 7.9, 10., 8., 9.5.

Just a word to reassure you... a)babies' birth weights don't *necessarily* increase as you have more, and b) bigger babies do not *necessarily* mean a more difficult birth, there are sooo many other factors that figure into it. ;)

Each birth is unique unto itself--I remember each for a different reason. My first was speedier than they expected, the only time I'd been told not to push. Yeah, whatEVER. NO urge to push with my second (9.15), talk about a challenge. With the twins, I went from 3cm to !BABIES! in about half an hour, the first was posterior, and even though she was my smallest ever, the pain was the worst of all of them. Her twin flew out with barely any effort and was nearly dropped on his head LOL. My 5th and biggest at 10lbs.(and our first homebirth) shot down the birth canal like a bowling ball down an elevator chute--talk about intense. Number Six was my smallest singleton, but took a bit of effort as her arm was up alongside her face. With Number Seven I forgot how to push! Who knew! She was born on the toilet (nearly went for a swim), "in the caul," and the cord was wrapped around her neck four times. Great Apgars in spite of it, beautiful and healthy.

Yours will be too, Mama. Blessings on your soon-to-be-expanding family.

Robin

P.S. Five days before we had #7, I got to be by my #1's side as she (at 5'2") gave birth naturally to a whopping ten-pounder--without an epis. Mamas' bodies truly are "Fearfully and wonderfully made." :)